memeorandum: Joint Statement From the U.S. Department of Defense and the Department of National Defense of the Republic of Niger (U.S. Department of Defense)

9:50 PM ET, May 19, 2024

Top Items:

Farnaz Fassihi / New York Times:

Helicopter Carrying Iran's President Has Crashed, State Media Reports — Rescuers are trying to locate the helicopter on which President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian were traveling, state media reported. Their status is unknown.

Arsalan Shahla / Bloomberg:

Iran's President Missing After Helicopter Crash in Dense Fog — Raisi was in Iran's East Azerbaijan province to inaugurate dam — President's entourage includes foreign minister, also missing — Rescue teams are searching into the night to try to locate Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi …

Discussion: Associated Press, CNN, ABC News, Reuters, Al Jazeera, RTÉ, New York Times, Al-Monitor, Washington Post, The Sun, prima donna …, Fortune, The Gateway Pundit and Human Events

Myah Ward / Politico:

Trump at NRA convention floats a 3-term presidency — The former president has more recently shut down the proposition of seeking a third term, which is barred by the Constitution. — Former President Donald Trump on Saturday floated the idea of a third term if he wins in November.

Discussion: Raw Story, Salon, USA Today, Mercury News, New York Post, Balloon Juice, Business Insider, Reuters, Mediaite, New York Times, The Gateway Pundit, NBC News, Associated Press, Washington Examiner, Forbes, The Post Millennial, Florida Politics and Breitbart

Victoria Bekiempis / The Guardian:

Trump floats idea of three-term presidency at NRA convention — During a bombastic speech in Dallas, GOP frontrunner asks: ‘Are we going to be considered three-term? Or two-term?’ — Donald Trump flirted with the idea of being president for three terms - a clear violation of the US constitution …

Discussion: Washington Examiner

U.S. Department of Defense:

Joint Statement From the U.S. Department of Defense and the Department of National Defense of the Republic of Niger — Representatives of the U.S. Department of Defense and the Department of National Defense of the Republic of Niger met from May 15 to 19, 2024, in Niamey, Republic of Niger …

Discussion: Washington Post, Associated Press, Task & Purpose and New York Times

Victoria Bekiempis / The Guardian:

Biden vows to fight ‘poison of white supremacy’ at Morehouse speech — Speech warmly received at historically Black college despite backlash from students in weeks leading to address over war — Joe Biden told graduating students of Morehouse College that American democracy has failed the Black community …

Discussion: NPR, Axios, Fox News, NBC News, Mediaite, Associated Press, RedState, Los Angeles Times, WFLA-TV, New York Post, The Daily Beast, USA Today, Al Jazeera, New York Times, Business Insider, Reuters, UPI and Politico

Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
At Atlanta fundraiser, President Biden tells supporters that Georgia shows the “power of the vote”

Discussion: Washington Examiner, The White House, New York Post, Hartford Courant, RedState, New York Times, The Gateway Pundit, Twitchy and Bloomberg

Wall Street Journal:
Biden and Trump Hunt for Breakthrough Moment in Stagnant Election

Discussion: Conservative Brief, Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Washington Examiner, BizPac Review, CBS News and Washington Post

Kaia Hubbard / CBS News:

Hungary's far-right PM Viktor Orbán has made “some smart decisions,” Sen. J.D. Vance says — Washington — Republican Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, rumored to be one of former President Donald Trump's vice-presidential contenders, said Sunday that the U.S “could learn from” …

Discussion: New York Post and Mediaite

Andrew Solender / Axios:

Democrats tee up showdown with GOP over non-citizen voting … - This dynamic has played out repeatedly in the 118th Congress - with House Republicans using their majority to try to overturn progressive D.C. laws and squeeze Democrats in the process. — Republicans' campaign apparatus …

Discussion: Associated Press

Axios:

Senate Democrats don't believe Biden's bad polls, either … - “No, I do not think that they are accurate,” Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) told Axios. … - “The polls showed that I was down when I entered my race. … - Now, Democrats say the polls are missing key voter dynamics on their side.

Discussion: Conservative Brief and The Daily Caller

Maeve Reston / Washington Post: After years of Democratic dominance, Nevada could be slipping from Biden's grasp

Washington Post:

Lawyer preparation suggests Trump won't testify in New York trial — Awaiting final word from the mercurial defendant, the judge is proceeding as if Trump will not take the stand. — After brashly declaring he wanted to testify in his criminal trial, it appears increasingly unlikely …

Discussion: Telegraph, Business Insider, Raw Story and RedState

Alexandra Marquez / NBC News:

Sen. Marco Rubio won't commit to accepting 2024 election results — Rubio blamed Democrats for opposing “every Republican victory since 2000. Every single one.” — Florida GOP Sen. Marco Rubio, widely seen as a potential vice presidential pick for former President Donald Trump …

Discussion: New York Times, The Post Millennial, Washington Examiner, Mother Jones, RedState, PoliticusUSA, USA Today, The Gateway Pundit, Florida Politics, The Guardian, New York Post, Raw Story, The Daily Caller, Crooks and Liars and Mediaite

Barak Ravid / Axios:

Bibi blocks Israeli intel chiefs' meetings with U.S. officials … - Rubio, vice chair of the Senate's intelligence committee, requested the meetings during his visit to Israel last month. — Netanyahu himself met with Rubio. … - Instead, the U.S. officials and some Netanyahu critics …

Discussion: Washington Examiner, ABC News and Hopium Chronicles

CNN:

CNN political commentator Alice Stewart dies — Alice Stewart, a veteran political adviser and CNN political commentator who worked on several GOP presidential campaigns, has died. She was 58. — Law enforcement officials told CNN that Stewart's body was found outdoors in the Bellevue neighborhood …

Politico:

‘Politically calculated’: Trump confronts his RFK Jr. problem on vaccines — The former president is accusing Kennedy of being a “fake” anti-vaxxer. — Donald Trump's long-fraught relationship with the Covid vaccine is again becoming a political liability for the former president as he tries …

Discussion: Washington Examiner